High adherence from different industries to the PCI Compact in the region of Balsas enables the consolidation of a single vision on territorial development

Workshops with a broad representation of stakeholders from the private sector and civil society took place on 8 and 9 October, online, for the presentation and discussion of qualitative targets set out in the axes Produce, Preserve and Include – PCI of the region of Balsas-MA.

The process to build this agenda started in July when an international event (also online) was held to present the proposal of the PCI Compact for the Region of Balsas and to invite interested players (farmers, companies, local communities and associations, governments, and civil society, among others) to take part in the construction of a joint vision for sustainable land use planning.

Since then, studies and meetings have been held to enable the integration of the PCI Compact with the strategies and projects already under development in the state of Maranhão and the 12 municipalities that comprise the proposal.

In the October workshops, more than 50 participants addressed questions about the process, discussed the proposals, and made contributions to the development of quantitative targets that will be presented at an online event on November 13th at 10am, Brasilia time. Register for the event here.

Gisela Introvini, superintendent of the North Export Corridor Research Support Foundation (Fapcen), highlights the great potential of the PCI Compact for this region. “”Over the past few years, we have been working to build a special development process for this region. And now we have the opportunity to think about how to orderly expand these existing structures in order to bring value to this often forgotten region. What Fapcen seeks is to bring visibility through sustainable development, because partnerships must be made and we must fight together for the territory”, she comments.

The model proposed for the Balsas Region is similar to the one promoted by IDH in the state of Mato Grosso and aims to boost sustainability in productive chains, through the development of coalitions with farmers, companies, local communities and associations, governments, civil society, financial institutions, and universities, among other actors.

“Keeping dialogues and debates, at a high level, is a key condition for the implementations that IDH has been making, such as the PCI Compact of the Balsas-MA Region,” adds Daniela Mariuzzo, IDH Brazil Executive Director & Latam Landscapes Program Director.

Fapcen is the organization responsible for the implementation of the PCI Compact of the Balsas region with IDH as its direct funder.